Philadelphia Graffiti Pier: Duendesring Dancers

When going to a photo meet, which is simply a gathering for creatives alike (e.g. photographers, models, artists, etc.), the whole point is to network with the people you meet and to build meaningful business relationships. Well, that was supposed to be the plan when I arrived at the Philadelphia Graffiti Pier for a photo meet, but things fell apart when only one model showed up, leaving most of the photographers without a subject to shoot. This initially turned me off from the experience given the fact that this was the first event that I attended in a long time that was supposed to help me get back into the groove of my photography since the pandemic. However, I didn't want to let my whole day go to waste, o I decided to take a look around to see what other opportunities the pier had to offer. It was the key to making this meet worth my while.

The first thing I came across was a DJ table set up by the edge of the pier. Lo and behold, I saw four beautiful women standing right in front of me -- three of them were spinning hula hoops around their waists, meanwhile the fourth one held on to these strange fans that I had never seen before. Suddenly, my photographer instincts kicked in, and it was at that moment I knew that I wanted to do a blog about those young women. So, I approached the first young woman who was the closest to me. While she danced, I asked her if it would be okay for me to photograph her as she performed. But, the music coming from the DJ table was so loud that the young woman thought that I was asking her if I could borrow a green hula hoop. This made me laugh because I had no idea what I was going to o with it. Nonetheless, the young woman turned around and asked another young lady to her left if it would be okay to let me use the hula hoop. Then, the young lady proceeded to pass it to me. I quickly began to tell her that there was a misunderstanding and asked the young woman again if I could photograph her. To my surprise, she was more than happy to showcase her impressive hula hoop tricks in front of my camera(s), along with the other three talented young women dancers. After the young woman finished her performance, I finally got a chance to introduce myself and so did she.

The lovely young woman's name was Jackie Camiscioli. She came all the way from North New Jersey. She travels all over performing circus acts, doing prop manipulation, dancing and more. Once I was introduced to Jackie, I was also able to meet the other three young women dancers and introduce myself as well. Beginning with Jewels, the second dancer, she has been a flow artist for four years and a fire performer for two years. She is apart of a firetroop group called Duendesring. As I photographed and filmed her dance, I noticed that her style of dancing was very smooth and filled with a sense of joy and playfulness, using more of her hips and arms which set her apart from the other dancers. I was really captured by her performance.

As for the third dancer, Jensen Brooks, she is also a flow and fire performer. As I photographed and filmed her, I could tell that she was a little nervous. But as soon as she got into her performance, her movements became aggressive and quick without fear of the fire she so easily manipulated. My mind was blown away thinking about what it took for her to master her talent. Last but not least, Anna, the fourth dancer, she is a fan performer. While I photographed and filmed her, I was able to tell how important flowing was to her in the way she executed her movements with the use of her fans. She moved so elegantly and with purpose. I could definitely tell what set her apart from the other dancers.

Duendesring Dancers Jackie, Jewels, Jensen, Ann & Ash:https://www.instagram.com/duendesring

After watching the talented young ladies perform, I ended the day with a group photo shoot. I must admit, although things started off a bit rocky, I had an amazing day afterall...one that I will never forget.

This is Keo...I'll see you on the next blog!